Pencil-sharpening machine.



PATENTED DEC. 20, 1904.

J. A. JONES. PENCIL SHARPENING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.2B,1904.

N0 MODEL.

fines/51707765 Inventor Httomegs UNIT ED STATES Patented December 20, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

PENClL-SHARPENING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 777,792, dated December 20, 1904. Application filed March 28, 1904. Serial No. 200,484.

T 0 ctZZ whom it ma concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES A. JONES, acitizen of the United States, residing at Plymouth, in the county of Marshall and State of Indiana, have invented a new and useful Pencil- Sharpening Machine, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to pencil-sharpening machines, and has for its object to provide for conveniently rotating the sharpener or knife element, to facilitate the engagement of a pencil with the sharpener, and to effectually hold the pencil against rotation under the action of the sharpener element.

With these and other objects in view the present invention consists in the combination and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter more fully described, shown in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that changes in the form, proportion, size, and minor details may be made within the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan View of a pencil-sharpening machine embodying the features of the present invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail sectional view taken through the pencil-holder and the sharpener. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the pencil-holder. Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view of the pencilsharpener.

Like characters of reference designate corresponding parts in each and every figure of the drawings.

For the support of the operating parts of the present machine I employ any suitable or preferred form of frame 1, which may be varied considerably in form without interfering with the operation of the machine. Located within one corner of the upper portion of the frame is a substantially horizontal anglebracket 2 for the support of the inner end of a shaft or mandrel 3, the outer end thereof being journaled in anysuitable manner in the opposite side of the frame. The inner end of this mandrel is provided with a longitudinal tapered or conical seat or recess 4, and one external face of this seat portion of the mandrel is cut away longitudinally to produce a longitudinal slot 5 and also to provide a flat seat portion 6 beyond the inner end of the socket and terminating in a shoulder 7. C0- operating with the socket 4 is a knife-blade 8, having its sharp edge disposed at one edge of the slot 5 and provided at its inner end with a lateral shank 9, applied to the seat 6 and abutted against the shoulder 7, there being a longitudinal slot 10 in the shank for the reception of an attaching-screw 11, whereby the knife is fastened to the mandrel and may be adjusted to take up wear upon its cutting edge.

To give access to the sharpener, an opening 12 is formed through the adjacent side of the frame and in longitudinal alinement with the open end of the socket 1, whereby a pencil may be conveniently passed through the opening, and thereby guided into the pencil-receiving socket of the pencil-sharpening element, so that by rotating the mandrel the pencil may be conveniently and effectively sharpened. For convenience in rotating the mandrel I employ-a drive-shaft 13, one end of which is projected externally of the frame for the attachment of the crank-handle 14, there beinga suitable sprocket-wheel 15, carried by the shaft and connected to a smaller sprocket 16 upon the mandrel by means of a suitable sprocket-chain 17. If desired, a flywheel may be provided upon the outer end of the mandrel.-

In order that it may not be necessary to manually hold the pencil against rotation under the action of the knife-blade, I propose to provide a mechanical pencil-holder, comprising a pair of superposed rollers 18 and 19, which are provided with the respective journals 20 and 21, mounted in upper and lower pairs of brackets 22 and 23 and projected externally of the latter, said brackets being carried by the frame and disposed at opposite sides of the pencil-receiving opening 12. The journals of the upper roller 18 are mounted in slots 24:, so as to have a vertical movement which is yieldably resisted by meansof springs 25, having their opposite ends connected to the corresponding ends of the journals 20 and 21. These rollers are normally in frictional engagement and are provided with registered annular grooves 26, and at the middle of the back of each of these grooves is abeveled or sharp annular rib or flange 27. \Vhen a pencil is thrust inwardly between the two rollers, the upper roller will yield somewhat to accommodate the pencil, the tension of the springs being sufficient to cause the annular ribs or flanges to bite into the pencil, and thereby hold the latter against rotation under the action of the rotatable sharpening-knife.

While the pencil-holder has been shown at the outer side of the frame 1, 1 contemplate placing it upon the inner side of the frame to bring the holder closer to the sharpener memher, so as to support the pencil more firmly at a point adjacent the sharpener.

From the foregoing description it is apparent that all of the parts of the present machine are in position for convenient access in operating the machine, and the sharpen ing-blade may be readily adjusted and also replaced when broken. Moreover, the pencil-holding device is arranged to conveniently receive a pencil without previous adjustment of the holder, and the latter will accommodate itself to pencils of different sizes and shapes.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed,and desired to be secured by Letters Patent, is-

1. A pencil-sharpening machine, having a rotatable mandrel which is provided in one end with a conical pencil receiving socket, the socketed portion of the mandrel being externally cut away to produce a longitudinal slot in one wall of the socket and form a flat seat beyond the inner end of the socket and terminating at its inner end in a shoulder, a knifeblade disposed at one edge of the slot in the socket and provided with a transverse shank applied to the seat and abutted against the shoulder and also provided with a slot in said shank disposed transversely of the mandrel, and a fastening passed through the slot of the shank and engaging the mandrel to-adjustably fasten the knife thereto.

2. A pencil-sharpening machine, having a pencil-holder including a pair of pencil-engaging rollers provided with registered peripheral pencil-receiving grooves, the backs of the grooves being provided with central annular flanges substantially \I-shaped in cross-section to bite into a pencil and hold the same against rotation.

3. A pencil-holder for pencil-sharpening machines, comprising a bracket having apair of bearing-openings and a pair of bearingslots, a pair of pencil-engaging rollers having journals mounted in the bearing-openings and slots respectively, the peripheries of the rollers being provided with pencil-receiving annular grooves having central annular flanges at the backs thereof which are substantially V-shaped in cross-section, and springs connecting the corresponding journals of the rollers to yieldably resist slidable movement of the roller which is mounted in the slots.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

JAMES A. JONES.

W'itnesses:

CYRUs B. CARLTON, HOWARD MYERS. 

